Your breath is deep and cadent
your body on the bed recumbent
but the crease across your brow
and stone of muscle at your jaw
tell me your worries do not rest
when you rest.

You carry them with you into sleep
and they seed your dreams
with loss of those you love
or love turning against you.
Your worries turn rest
against you.  

You cannot let them go.
Your worries give you comfort
though they prick the skin
and cast foul shadows in every corner.
They mapped the world for you.
They are tracks to a known destination
less frightening than seeking
unseen brighter places.

Tonight when you rest
let me hold your worries
so you have the rest that repairs
broken stitching and doesn’t tear
new holes for worry to nest in.
You can take wingless flight
to fantastic places in dreams
that make you wake up laughing.